Prince Christian has been named godfather to the infant Prince Gustav Albrecht of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg, who was christened over the weekend.
Prince Gustav is the child of Prince Gustav and Princess Carina of Sayn-Wittengstein-Berleburg, and was born via surrogacy on 26 May 2023 in the United States.
The baby’s other godparents are Princess Theodora of Greece, Ellen Hillingsø, Arabella Gaggero, His Highness Prince Franz-Albrecht and Prince Carl-Anton.
Prince Gustav was christened at the Berleburg Castle Chapel on 26 August in the presence of members of the Danish Royal Family and the Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg Royal Family.
Prince Gustav and Princess Carina have walked a long road on their way to marriage and children. Under the terms of his late grandfather’s will, Prince Gustav was legally barred from marrying anyone that was not Protestant, noble, or of Aryan blood.
After the death of his father, Prince Richard, Prince Gustav faced legal challenges from other members of his family who felt they should inherit the title of Prince of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg due to the situation surrounding Carina.
In 2020, a German court struck down the claims and found that Carina satisfied the requirements for marriage to Prince Gustav and the couple became engaged.
The couple married civilly on 3 June 2022 and religiously the following day, officially recognising Carina as princess after dating Prince Gustav for 19 years. Though for decades they were prevented from marrying, Princess Carina was still treated as a member of the family and accompanied Prince Gustav to official events.
The Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg branch is related to the Danish royals through Princess Benedikte, who is Prince Gustav’s mother. She was married to the late Prince Richard of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg from 1968 to 2017.
